Having been delayed by the hospital visit and not having time to buy groceries or cook, the two simply ate a bowl of beef noodles outside before heading home.
Once home, they completely forgot that they had been learning a game before going to the hospital. Chu Ge diligently started writing, while Qiu Wuji opened the door across the hall and went to refine pills.
This showed that Qiu Wuji hadn't quite grasped the fun of the game yet. Aside from remembering that a certain character, the Brickback Pig, resembled Chu Ge, everything else was long forgotten.
Several days had passed, and the few batches of pills refined by Little Flame were almost finished; this was more important…
These days, as Chu Ge's cultivation improved, the quality of the items he could spare gradually increased, allowing him to refine pills of slightly higher grade.
Qiu Wuji chose a new, relatively difficult-to-refine pill called the Three Souls and Five Elements Pill. This pill is only used in the Golden Core stage, its main effect being to promote the unity of body and soul for Golden Core cultivators undergoing soul forging, preventing them from being easily separated by soul-searching techniques. Its effect is similar to, but not entirely equivalent to, the Soul-Forging Pill for solidifying the Soul Sea.
The Immortal Path has many intricacies… Chu Ge can't learn them all yet, but with Qiu Wuji overseeing things, that's enough.
This pill was chosen because of the newly heard "Chess-Playing Murder Technique," which Qiu Wuji understood as a soul-stealing technique that causes the soul to leave the body or directly destroy it. Although the prerequisite for its effectiveness is somewhat bizarre, the principle remains the same; this kind of pill is very meaningful.
Refining pills is much more time-consuming than writing.
The so-called Nine-Turn Golden Pill, for example, takes at least eighty-one days to refine; it's already good if it doesn't take eighty-one years. Previously, the pills that could be refined in half an hour or an hour were relatively low-level. Slightly higher-level pills would require half a day or a day to refine – such is the fleeting nature of cultivation.
Of course, the ridiculous creator god setting is still annoying. Why isn't refining pills so complicated for everyone else?
Hmph.
Qiu Wuji's mood at this moment was like students angrily cursing Li Bai, Du Fu, and Bai Juyi for writing such long, misleading poems.
Refining pills in the book, and refining pills outside the book too! So many things left undone. Yesterday I even learned a recipe for hairy crabs and planned to buy some to research. My autobiography isn't finished, the game hasn't even started, and time is being wasted on things like this…
Wait, I haven't refined pills much in the book. As a sect boss, pill refining is handled by subordinates. Having to be a little assistant to refine pills for him outside the book, sob sob…
Amidst Qiu Wuji's rich inner monologue, Chu Ge's head suddenly popped out in front of him.
Qiu Wuji, expressionless, pressed his face down and shoved him aside: "Don't block my view of the fire." Chu Ge squatted to the side, hands in his pockets: "Not done yet? I've already finished a chapter of the book."
Qiu Wuji snapped: "You try it!"
Chu Ge stroked his chin: "I think I have another way."
The world within the book, the Heart of Blazing Flames.
Yan Qianlie was in seclusion, his injured primordial spirit recovering somewhat in recent days. Above the small flame, a clear, enormous phantom of his original form could now appear. At a glance, the shadow of the fiery giant beneath the ground towered to the heavens, its imposing presence extremely intimidating.
Several cultists in fiery red robes knelt around him, devoutly bowing: "May our lord recover soon." Yan Qianlie had roamed the Nine Provinces of the demonic path for so many years, and he still had quite a few loyal followers. Recently, he had gradually gathered them under his wing, reorganizing the foundation of his Fire Prison Sect.
This was all part of the plot, except that outside the plot, Yan Qianlie had other goals: to kill those who wanted to tear the heavens apart. "Hmm, not now, let's wait until I recover."
The phantom of the fire giant opened its blazing eyes, its deep, majestic voice echoing through the earth: "Find the healing and restorative materials for me, and the materials to reshape my Dharma body. What use are these empty blessings?"
"Yes..." A subordinate knelt reverently, offering a fiery herb: "Your subordinate has found the Flaming Sun Grass..." Yan Qianlie was quite satisfied: "Refine the Heaven-Burning Pill for me... The day I recover will be the day those... well, the day those hypocritical righteous sects cry out!"
"Our lord will surely rise and sweep across the world, the Fire Hell will finally burn the heavens!"
Amidst the devout praise, Yan Qianlie surveyed the entire scene, a surge of heroic spirit rising within him. What does temporary victory or defeat matter? I still have...
Before the thought could finish, a hand appeared from the void, snatching away the Soul-Binding Pearl containing its own small flame.
Yan Qianlie: "..."
The followers: "???"
Where is our Lord?
Where did that enormous phantom go?
Even the tiny flame has vanished...
"Although our Lord is severely injured, he still roams the world freely, coming and going at will. We couldn't even sense when he left." The followers were terrified, their awe overflowing.
Yan Qianlie, who had been inexplicably dragged out of the book, understood immediately upon seeing the alchemy furnace before him.
The little flame roared in fury: "Damn Heavenly Dao! You sent me out here just to refine pills for you two! I'll curse you..."
"I intentionally added to your plot, allowing you to be reborn from the ashes and rediscover some of the meaning of Nirvana, which will benefit your future Heavenly Realm storyline. Of course, Yan Qianlie is domineering and arrogant, and definitely won't like this kind of bestowal..."
"Do I need your damn bestowal? I can comprehend the White Flame even without you writing it! Go ahead and erase it if you dare!"
"The point of the plot is that this is an improvement within the rules, and it won't be erased."
"..." The little flame swallowed its anger: "Anyway, I'm at your mercy. I'll listen to you. What kind of pill are you refining this time? Oh, the Three Souls and Five Elements Pill, is that all?" Qiu Wuji crossed his arms and glanced sideways, as if seeing his past self.
Since being given the setting of being willing to obey fate, Yan Qianlie is clearly different; he himself might not even be sure if he's still himself.
Chu Ge watched the little flame begin its fluttering alchemy, then suddenly asked, "What does that Du Lianfeng look like? Conjure a face for me."
The little flame casually conjured a face: "Like this."
Chu Ge memorized it, nodding thoughtfully: "Understood. I might need your help later."
The little flame remained silent, but its flames grew somewhat menacing.
*Maybe not. I'd better actually need your help.
*I haven't killed anyone in ages… I'm about to explode…* Leaving the little flame to refine the pills, Chu Ge and Qiu Wuji finally returned to their room side by side, silent the entire way.
Only after entering the room did Qiu Wuji sigh, "Your world control has reached this level? You can actually pull Yan Qianlie out of the world at will."
Chu Ge said, "It's probably because of my soul form. Other things are limited by energy and can't be brought out, but I can pull him out. What, you don't trust him?"
"No, I trust him completely, because your settings are almost irreversible." Qiu Wuji smiled, "No one understands this better than me."
"You..." Chu Ge gently embraced her, whispering, "Are you reminded of your own situation again?"
Qiu Wuji said, "Chu Ge...don't you think I'm being sentimental? I'm usually a genuine person, acting on my own thoughts. You don't impose anything on me, so logically I don't need to do anything, right? But I always feel uneasy..." "I always feel like this isn't enough, like something's missing."
"That's normal, because you're Qiu Wuji." Chu Ge smiled. "Including Yan Qianlie, it's the same. You've cultivated for tens of thousands of years, your willpower and self-discipline far surpass ordinary people. If it were me, Chu Ge, I might have given up long ago, but you're not. It's precisely because you're not that you have Qiu Wuji's charm. You're a top-tier cultivator, not some whine little pig hiding in a gentle embrace." Qiu Wuji smiled slightly, not continuing the topic, and instead asked, "Why do you feel there's something you need Yan Qianlie's help with?"
"I was thinking, that ability to manipulate people like a chess piece, isn't it similar to my 'Heaven and Earth Shattering'? If so, I'd love to compete with him. That's also part of my exploration, Chu Ge's exploration. Let's work hard together."